Ultrasound and CT scan- What if neither show the gallbladder as the cause of my symptoms?

I have been having a dull aching pain in my upper right quadrant of my abdomen that comes and goes, as well as nausea that comes and goes. I have not noticed an association with food however I have a strong family history of gallbladder problems. I had an ultrasound and they found no gallstones, so today I took a CT scan (still waiting for the results)....if both of these come back normal....could it still be my gallbladder? What else can they do to check for it? I really think it is my gallbladder.

I have already had my appendix out and I am not pregnant.

I had my gallbladder removed and it was really hard for me to convince the doctors that it was not my ovaries or just me making it up! I had a dye-test ran where I was put on a table with a scan going on over my stomach for about an hour. The doctor injected dye into my arm and it somehow triggered my gallbladder. You will feel a huge wave of nausea rush over you but it determines how quickly the gallbladder contracts and so forth. I found out that mine was 85% non-functioning. It wasn't too bad, shortly after that it was out and that was all she wrote! I will say that when I was sick I avoided all foods that trigger acid reflux and I did temporarily feel better. Try that as you are waiting. Just look it all up online. I know that foods with high acidity levels like tomatoes and ketchup are not good for you right now. Also, I had no gallstones so they could not see anything on the scans. So if they say that, insist on this additional test just to be safe. Mine was practically rotting in my body and trying to leach on to other organs because of the lack of urgency they had. It was crazy!

a detached appendix, can cause your symptons. Happened to a neighbors child years ago. Found the appendix floating next to her spine. If they can't find the usual suspects hopefully they will look at the unusual. Think outside their box.

You need to get the injection scan that the response above talked about. My mom just had her gallbladder removed, and I also have gallbladder problems. Avoid fatty foods and spicy foods, and that should help. Gallbladder pain also spreads around your back, so that's another symptom you can look for. My mom's CT and ultra-sound came up normal, but the injection scan, (i can't remember what it's called), showed that her gallbladder was nonfunctioning. Her gallbladder began poisoning her because of it not functioning. You really need to tell your doctor your thoughts, and have some other tests run on your gallbladder. Good Luck! I hope you feel better!

Its called a CT myelogram and it will show if you have gallbladder issues. I had mine out at 19. I ate some chicken tenders and onion rings. Go figure! An hour later I was in the emergency room b/c the pain was so bad. I couldn't sit still at all.
The pain wouldn't be dull though. I would have described it as stabbing pain. Next time this happens try sitting up. Do not lie down. If it relieves the pain a little bit then it could be a gallbladder issue. Good luck hun, I know it sucks, but hang in there and keep being persistent. Don't let them push you around. Call the doc every day if you have to. Your health is important enough for them to take your concerns seriously. No one knows your body like you.

Well, a biliary scan may help. However, there are several other problems that need to be ruled out. Just because you have a family history of gal bladder disease does not mean this is the only possible cause of right upper quadrant pain. Just allow your physician to perform a thorough work up, and I'm sure she'll figure it out. She may order additional lab work, and other radiologial studies, as well. There are a whole host of problems that could be the issue here, so let your physician look into this thoroughly. Ultimately, if they are unable to find the source of your pain, they may need to do a simple exploratory surgery to determine the cause. This sounds kind of scary, but it is routinely performed outpatient surgery most of the time.